RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF SAN FRANCISCO RIGHT OF WAY POLICY ORDINANCE

 

WHEREAS, Supervisor John Avalos and his co-sponsors Supervisors Breed, Wiener, Kim, Mar, and Campos have introduced the “San Francisco Right of Way Policy” Ordinance the purpose of which is to:

 

(a) Establish the ‘San Francisco Right-of-Way Policy’ to promote the City and County of San Francisco’s Transit First and Vision Zero policies, and to promote safety, tolerance, and harmony among all users of San Francisco Streets; and

 

(b) Make citations for bicyclists for failure to stop at a stop sign offenses the City and County of San Francisco’s lowest traffic law enforcement priority, provided that the bicyclist first slows to a safe speed and yields the right-of-way to any other vehicle or pedestrian in the intersection; and,

 

WHEREAS, the Bicycle Advisory Committee is tasked with advising the Board of Supervisors on matters that concern bicycling; and,

 

WHEREAS, the proposed San Francisco Right-of-Way Policy would have the effect of (a) making the actions of people riding bicycles more predictable at stop-signs, (b) allow the police department to focus their enforcement on the dangerous behavior of bicyclists not yielding properly, riding too closely to pedestrians or traveling at too high of rate of speeds, and  helping to engender a culture of respectful riding amongst bicyclists as it would more clearly delineate which behavior is unsafe and unwelcome; and,

 

WHEREAS, a similar policy has been law in the state of Idaho since 1982 and the year following the passage of the law saw a 15%[1] decrease in collisions involving bicyclists as compared to the year before ; and,

 

WHEREAS, the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) has limited enforcement resources at their disposal to pursue the city’s official goal of Vision Zero, meaning zero traffic fatalities by 2024, and those resources should be focused on the behaviors that most often lead to collisions according to available data; therefore, be it

 

RESOLVED, the Bicycle Advisory Committee calls for the Board of Supervisors to adopt the  proposed “San Francisco Right-of-Way Policy” Ordinance put forth by Supervisor Avalos, Breed, Wiener, Kim, Mar, and Campos. The Ordinance further establishes:

 

1. To promote safety, tolerance, and harmony on our streets, all users of San Francisco streets shall respect others’ right-of-way and take their turn when navigating intersections.

 

2. All users of San Francisco streets - pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers - shall immediately yield the right-of-way to an authorized emergency vehicle that is sounding a siren.

 

3. Because San Francisco is a Transit-First city, all users of San Francisco streets shall yield to Municipal Railway (Muni) vehicles at intersections where feasible. Yielding to Muni makes public transit faster and more reliable, which benefits all users of San Francisco streets.

 

4. Because San Francisco has committed to a Vision Zero plan to reduce traffic fatalities to zero, drivers and bicyclists shall always yield to pedestrians and shall remain vigilantly aware of pedestrians at all times.

 

5. Because of the safety reasons outlined in the findings section of ordinance (Sec. 117.3), bicyclists shall yield to motorized vehicles and pedestrians in the roadway when present, but they may proceed without fully stopping at stop signs if the intersection is empty; be it

 

FURTHER RESOLVED, The Bicycle Advisory Committee asks that the Board of Supervisors consider adding the following language to the Ordinance as currently written to further clarify and improve the San Francisco Right-of-Way Policy:

- Bicyclists are not to pass within six feet of a pedestrian;

- Bicyclists are not to approach an intersection traveling more than eight miles per hour;

- The enforcement of the following traffic violations by bicyclists shall not receive a reduction in prioritization: running red lights, riding on the sidewalk, riding the wrong direction on a one-way street, riding without proper lighting, and blocking a crosswalk; and,

 

- Establish a robust education program to help educate cyclists as well as pedestrians and drivers of the proposed Right-of-Way Policy for the purpose of creating more respectful riding and greater harmony on our streets. Key elements of this education program might include Public Service Announcement videos, an education campaign led by SFPD to warn and then ticket bicyclists who are violating the Right-of-Way Policy, and the development of a “Respectful Rider” Oath to be created and promoted from within the bicycling community.

 

Submitted and adopted on September 28, 2015

Approved by unanimous consent in attendance:

District 1: Kevin Dole

District 2: Winston Parsons

District 3: Marc Brandt

District 4: Edward Nicholson

District 5: Morgan Fitzgibbons

District 9: Ilyse Magy

District 10: Paul Wells

District 11: Casey Allen

 

Kevin Dole, Chair